Meeting With President Cusick

This morning we stopped at a car wash and discovered that on Wednesdays they have a discount for seniors.  We have also found that many restaurants have senior discounts and early dining specials.  Although we are not here as retired seniors, I'm happy to take advantage of the discounts that local businesses have for them.

Any notion of this being a type of retirement was dispelled when we met with President Cusick.  He was in Sarasota for some missionary interviews, so he asked us to meet with him.  I was set apart as the 1st counselor in the mission presidency.  I had not thought about it before, but the mission president is given priesthood keys to preside over the mission.  That makes sense, but when talking about priesthood keys previously, I had not included mission presidents as holding keys.

Following my setting apart, we joined him for a long lunch.  During the lunch, he again reviewed what he would like us to do.  He slightly expanded his previous list.  One of the new tasks he gave us was to try to meet with and train the Ward Mission Leaders in three stakes we are to work with.  He also suggested that we let the missionaries know that we would like to go to teaching appointments with them.  He would also like us to train the zone leaders and district leaders on conducting baptism interviews.  So we are likely to have plenty to do.

He also suggested that we go to the chapels on Wednesday evenings when YM/YW meetings are held and just meet people.  He noted that the leaders who are in the buildings on Wednesday evenings are the core leaders in the wards.  So we hurried and had dinner and drove to the Sarasota chapel because it is the closest.  In addition to YM and YW, the Sarasota Ward also was holding Cub Scout meeting and Activity Day.  So we were able to meet several people, including the bishop, in the Sarasota Ward.  It was interesting that they were excited when we told them that we are new senior missionaries.  But when we say that we are assigned to work with all of the wards in the stake and not their ward, they lose some of their excitement.